Jeremiah 24 – Rotten To the Core

Objective:

Through the explanation of Jeremiah 24 and John 15:4-9, students will learn about the importance of “remain(ing) in Jesus’ love”, and that their choices of whether or not to do so can make a great impact on their lives, both for the good and the bad.

Important suggestions:

1. Best if on-site at an apple (or peach) orchard
2. Also best if you’ve already taught on the soils in Matthew 13
3. Read Jeremiah 24 before doing this lesson, and get the gist of what’s going on so you can summarize it to your students.

Scripture:

• Jeremiah 24 (know it to summarize it)
• John 15:4-9

Materials needed:

1. Apple Orchard
2. 2 bags for the apples
   1. 1 for good apples
   2. 1 for bad apples
3. Bibles (of course!)

Activity:

• As you walk down the rows of apples, ask the students to take notice of the apples
• Ask students to collect good apples (on trees) and place them into 1 bag
• Ask some other students to collect bad apples (ground) and place them into the other bag

Explain:

1. In Jeremiah 24, Jeremiah saw a vision of 2 baskets full of figs (apples are more familiar in America)
   • 1 Basket = good fruit
     • Picked from the tree by hand
     • Ripened nicely
     • Well taken care of
     • Choice fruit
   • 1 Basket = Bad fruit
     • Fell from the tree on their own (weren’t shaken off)
     • Smashed and gross
     • Rotten and spoiled
2. In the vision:
   • Tree = God
   • Apples = God’s people
   • In Baskets = gathered/ collected and carried off
   • They’ll return one day
     • The Babylonian exile lasted 70 years
     • Many didn’t live long enough to return themselves
       • Their children (seeds) returned and made Judah their home

Scripture:

• Read John 15:4
  • Remain in Christ → produce good fruit
  • Separate yourself from Christ → bad fruit
    

Explain (from Jeremiah 24)

• The Good Fruit = those who remained faithful to God
  • Trials, but “for their own good”
  • Provisions & care
  • God returned their seeds to their inherited home, where He:
    1. Built them up
    2. Gave them hearts for God
    3. Saved them
• The Bad Fruit = Those who feel from the tree by their own decision
  • Weren’t shaken
  • Weren’t blown off
  • Weren’t picked and left to rot

Out of their own free will, they chose to leave their branches. Look at them now (pick up a gross apple).

Ask/Reflect:

• “Would you eat this?” (Respond to their reactions to it)
• “Would you want to eat any of these rotten ones?” (no)
• “Why are they rotten/spoiled, etc.?”
• “If you asked others over here if they’d eat these rotten ones on the ground, how do you think they’d respond?”

Explain:

• God said that those who represented the bad fruit, He would make objects of horror and evil to everyone, everywhere!

Discussion/Reflect

• Why do people “leave the tree” (no pun intended):?
• What does God say will happen to people who willingly drop from the branch?
• Looking at John 5:8, what does Jesus say will be the gift for remaining in Him?
• Looking at yourselves now, which apples do you best represent? (Be honest, we’re not judging you or your decisions that got you here). Why?
• What do you think Jesus means in v. 9 where He says, “Remain in Jesus’ love”? Doesn’t God love everybody? How then should somebody “Remain His Jesus’ love”?

(For those who are older: “what might your seeds be? How can you plant them in good soil?” — Matthew 13)

• Read John 15:4-9 again, together.
• Pray together for help and determination to Remain in Jesus’ love.

Challenge (optional):

1. Read Jeremiah 24 on their own.